


Stubborn Like a Rock

by Krill (Yanzoo)



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-26
Updated: 2020-08-27
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:01:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24930466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yanzoo/pseuds/Krill
Summary: It's been eigtheen years since Korra has passed away, and yet the world still searches for the avatar. The whole of the Earth Nation and the New Republic has been trying to find the next in the avatar cycle to no avail. Daily reminders to the population are given every day through the newspapers and telemovers and yet hope seems almost lost. To some, it is even a hidden blessing.
Kudos: 5





	1. The Sewer Rats

“Filthy rats! Come back here with my cabbages!” The old geezer screamed as the three ruffians escaped through the pavement.

Kai flipped the merchant as he ran away. Kuse tapped him in the shoulder to get his attention as she threw him the sack with the vegetables, focusing in the manhole at the middle of the street. Traffic was way too intense for them to escape through it, so Ming quickly bent the earth to stop them at their tracks, badly damaging one that couldn’t stop quickly enough. Kuse bent the sewer water upwards, unsealing the mahole and spinning it up in the air, the three jumped in quickly as the heavy metal circle spun and spun, then quickly fell down, sealing the way behind them.

When the vendor lifted it up again and looked down the dark and stinky corridors, he couldn’t see anything.

“Ugh! Not my cabbages!”

The metallic thud echoed through the sewers, and only then did Kai light up a small flame.

“Nice” Kai said with a proud smile, getting his bandana out of his face “Finally something else but cheap noodles. Let’s get back to the hideout before the smell of this place seeps into our dinner” He said as he led the way with his flame.

“You think they’ll follow us?” Kuse asked as she followed the fire bender.

“Probably not. For a few cabbages?” Kai sneered “He’ll be grumpy for a few days but that’s about it”.

“Yeah but Ming had the brilliant idea to smash that lady’s car with his bending”

“Hey, would you rather be ran over by a satomobile? You should thank me for giving you an opening instead” Ming retorted angrily

“You’ve got to have more finesse with those things. For one, you could have bent it closer to the manhole”

Ming let out a hearty chuckle.

“Me? Finesse? You’re talking with the wrong earthbender girl”

“Will you two shut up? By the spirits I swear your bickering gets to me sometimes” Kai interrupted “The important thing is that it worked, ok? We can try to do better next time”

“Next time? Kai, maybe we should stop with these things, you know? I’ve already got a job at the sewer cleaning facility… How long till they catch us?”

“That won’t ever happen, the three of us are invincible together! Come on… I’m getting my money too…”

“Yeah, by performing to the public with some subpar fire bending tricks. And stealing wallets” She sighed “This isn’t sustainable Kai, we’ve got to figure out something already”

“Whatever” Ming said, taking the lead and grabbing the cabbage bag from Kai.

“Hey! What’s the nerve?” Kai asked.

“You two may want to get out of here, but I’m just fine with it” He hadn’t taken the mask off yet, Kai’s fire giving him a fairly sinister look, accentuating his anger “If you want to quit, sure, go ahead, but I’m not sacrificing this life just so I can get a comfy bed somewhere near the spirit wilds” He said, then stomping out towards the darkness.

“What’s up with this guy?” Kuse asked with an unimpressed look on her face.

“I wish I knew” Kai said with a sigh “Let’s get going”

* * *

The black and white TV had terrible signal, and the audio had to be jerry rigged in such a way that it would intensify the waves from an already poor reception, making it very graining and obnoxious to listen to. Yet, all of the hobos in the complex swarmed the tv and the scrap-metal speakers to get their daily news and the telemovers.

“And that’s for the weather. A daily reminder to any in republic city and other united nations territories, that the White Lotus foundation is still searching for the avatar. Any information about who could it be is appreciated and the organization thanks all that have been trying to help”

“Pffft!” Kai sneered “When will they ever find that guy?”

“Or girl” Kuse interrupted.

“Yeah, or girl. Whenever will they find them? It’s been what? eighteen years?”

“Guess he just doesn’t want to show up” Ming said, still half paying attention to the TV.

“Or she” Kuse added.

“Nah I have a feeling that it’s a dude”

“What makes you so sure?” Kuse asked, intrigued.

“It’s just a gut feeling really”

“You sure that’s not the cabbage soup?” Kuse teased.

“You said they were pretty good!” Ming protested “I made them with so much passion”

“Alright, alright. They were nice. But I’d really like to know what makes you think that the avatar is a guy now. I mean, the two avatars before korra were guys, why wouldn’t the spirit go for another gal next? You know, to even things out”

Ming chuckled heartily, prompting a few of the other homeless to shush him so they could focus on the audio grain and try to make out the words properly.

“Look, I’m sure that Raava doesn’t have a lot of choice on who’s reborn with the avatar spirit”

“Raava?” Kai asked, genuinely confused “Who’s that?”

“The spirit of light and peace, the other side of the coin to Vaatu”

“... How the hell do you know that stuff? I don’t remember anything like that ever appearing on TV”

“I uhm… Heard it somewhere, can’t remember” Ming answered, turning his head back to the TV.

“Does this Raava thing choose the next avatar?”

“No, not really, she just reincarnates with Wan’s spirit”

“Reincarnates huh? And who’s Wan?”

“First avatar, fused with Raava, learned all the four elements and all. Come on, I’m sure they teach you that stuff”

“Yeah I bet they do. In school” Kai laughed “Like I’ve ever stepped on that place. Did you, Ming?”

“I… I don’t remember. Maybe I did, before I became an orphan. My childhood memories are kinda fuzzy”

“Well, it’s very unlike you to go to school, y’know” Kuse said.

“What, you saying I’m stupid or something?” Ming asked back, aggressively, just to be shushed again by the crowd.

“No, no… It’s just. Well I don’t know, I don’t take you’d know all this avatar stuff”

“Well, he’s been missing for eighteen years, we grew up with people talking about it non-stop, talking about the avatars that preceded him and stuff. Maybe I just got it from people talking about it all the time” Ming said, scratching his nose “Kind of annoying to be honest…”

“Well, when they find… Him, then I’m sure they’ll stop talking about it. And it’ll be news about him going around saving people from then onwards” Kuse said.

“Yeah… I bet…” Ming said, a bit of a sad tone to it.

“... What’s up with you?” Kai asked.

“Just. It must suck to be the avatar, you know? You have all the world’s weight on your shoulders, and you can’t do anything about it. He’ll have no say on whatever comes his way once he’s found”

“So what?” Kai sneered “It’s not like it’s our problem”

“I mean, you’re right, but I agree with Ming, it must kinda suck having to take responsibilities that you didn’t choose to have. But you know, we don’t got to choose a lot of things, some have it harder than others, right? I mean, look at where we’re at, I think we can say something”

“Oh for the love of the spirits will you shut up!” An old lady shouted to the three.

“Got the memo. I’ll go upside, gotta get some air” Ming said, standing up from the small gathering of hobos and unwashed homeless towards the nearest exit to the surface.

Didn’t take long until his feet took him to Korra park, with the statue of the previous avatar right in the middle of a small river, that led down and went beneath a beautiful bridge that faced the statue’s backside. Some airbender disciples were meditating right next to it. For some reason Ming went with them.

“Hey… You two…” He approached the disciples as they looked back at him.

“Oh, hey there, would you like something?” One of them asked, with a gentle tone.

“Yeah could I… Join you on your meditation?”

“Feeling down on your luck, friend?” The other asked with a friendly smile. “Sure thing, and if you need we can share our food with you. If you don’t mind vegetarian food, that is”

“I would love it” He smiles back, sitting by the two disciples as one shared a rice cake with him.

“Here, I hope you like it”

Ming was a bit full, but he couldn’t pass some delicious cooked food. He ate it and would have asked for more were not for the cabbage soup from earlier.

“It’s delicious, thank you”

“Do you know how to meditate?” One of the air disciples asked.

“I have tried a few times… But I’m sure you two know a lot more about it than I”

“It’s about letting your spirit be free, and to let your mind wander without control” The other said “Join your fists together and breath deeply. Yes yes, right, just like that… Then you keep controlling your breathing until you’ve got it under a calm rhythm… Then… you do……….”

When Ming opened his eyes, he was in the spirit realm once more. He stood up and walked around, fairly familiar with that place’s whimsical madness. From dense jungles he turned a corner and ended up in a sprawling field, with a little house at the middle. Just by the smell, Ming could tell Iroh was making another tea party. He smiled, his body was full but he wouldn’t mind some spirit tea.

He walked towards the little congregation of spirits, with Iroh serving a smaller than usual crew, humming a song as he did.

“Oh, Ming! It’s so nice to see you here again”

“I had to come, this place always calms me up”

“Problems at home once more?”

“Yeah… My friends are thinking of leaving, they both are getting jobs and stuff”

“Well, you can’t fault them for wanting a better life, now can you? Why haven’t you also put work into getting a better life yourself?”

“What for? To have responsibilities? To have to pay bills and go to work in such and such hour, to do a lot of boring fetching? They won’t need me, I’ll be just another cog in the machine. I’d rather stick with whatever freedom I have, at least for now”

“You seem very set on being free. I can’t fault you for that, but do understand that the world needs you, and it always will. You have a place in it just as anyone else, and you won’t be able to dodge your responsibilities forever”

“I think he could, he just has to be sneaky!” A fox spirit said.

“Now now, don’t go giving him bad ideas, alright?” Iroh censored “Now come, Ming, sit with us, have a cup of tea”

“Thank you Iroh” He sat down, sighing as he took a few sips from the spirit tea, feeling his whole soul settle down, a deep clarity invading his mind.

When he woke up it was night already. On his lap there was a note wrapped around a rice cake.

“You did great kid! We were honestly afraid of disrupting your meditation, but we hope we can meet again soon. Better compliments, Niehi and Ki” Ming read beneath a park light as he munched down the rice cake.

He smiled as he stood up and headed back home.


	2. Leaving it All Behind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is time for a change. Ming finds Niehi and Ki once more and has some meaningful conversation.

“You sure you want to stay here, bud?” Kai asked, closing up the cardboard box with all his stuff “You can crash at my place for a while until you find a job…”

“I’m fine, thanks” He almost spat, venom filling his tongue as he frowned in anger, not even looking at his friend.

Kai simply sighed, knowing the stubborn little rock wouldn’t budge. It was useless asking for at least one last hug. He knew that they wouldn’t be seeing each other again either.

“Alright, take care”

Ming watched as him and Kuse walked towards the surface, neither of them looking back. Some of the hobos congratulated them for leaving, wishing them luck on the upside. All warm smiles and a few hugs even. Before long they were gone, taking the ladders to outside of the sewer system.

* * *

“Hey, Niehi and Ki, right?” Ming approached them, a saddened smile in his face.

They looked back and greeted him with friendly grins.

“Oh you! It’s nice seeing you again. Gosh, how long has it been?” Ki was the burlier one, quite big muscles for an air disciple. He held beads with the air nomads symbol carved into it and wore more layered clothes.

“Some weeks…” Ming answered “Would you mind me sitting with you?”

“Not at all! Come. Would you like a rice cake? These ones have some added paraia milk, it’s delicious” Niehi was a lot slimmer than Ki, with simpler, classical glider clothes. He still had some hair to him, unlike Ki, but it was limited to a ponytail held back by a web of cloth strings.

“I would love to” Ming sat next to them.

Ki handed him a rice cake, with a gentle smile soothing the earthbender’s worries. Ming accepted it gratefully, taking large bites at a time as he listened to the waterflow next to them, looking up to Korra’s statue.

“Impressive figure, is she not?” Niehi asked “Grand master Meelo knew her since he was a little boy, and he loved to tell stories about her, from all of the adventures she had”

“I’m familiar with avatar Korra’s adventures” Ming said “They are amazing… But also terrifying”

“Why so?” Ki asked “The way my father told them to me they always seemed quite incredible”

“Avatar Korra faced dangers none of the previous avatars had to face. Never in thousands of years did Vaatu come back to the physical realm until when Unolaq broke him free during harmonic convergence” He said “Aang had to deal with fire lord Ozai at a firebender’s most powerful hour, but never with a spiritual foe that formidable. There is also when she was poisoned and close to death, or when she had to face a weapon of mass destruction” He concluded.

“You do know a lot about Avatar Korra” Ki said in surprise “How so?”

“I… Watch a lot of TV… I like her documovers”

“She has those? Dang, I wish we had TVs at Air Temple Island” Niehi said.

“You don’t have those? I live among a bunch of hobos and we at least have a black and white one”

“It would distract us from our practices. Besides, we can always go to a local café to watch a few telemovers and take a cup of coffee or two” Niehi answered

“Hm, don’t you guys prefer tea”

“Oh no-hoho” Ki answered “Don’t take me wrong, tea is incredible, specially with the variety of leaves we have. But it does not even compare to the taste of coffee, especially when it has some cream and honey mixed in!”

“A shame they’re a bit above our reach sometimes… It’s fairly difficult to get any money” Niehi commented, taking a sip of tea “Would you like some tea?” He asked Ming.

“I’d love to” He answered, taking the cup with two hands and taking a sip “But don’t you guys get paid back at air temple?”

“Pfff? Paid? Why would we?” Ki sneered, reminding Ming of Kai.

The earthbender turned his gaze away from the burly air nomad and down towards his own cup of tea.

“Oh I’m sorry” Ki apologized, reaching his hand towards him.

“No it’s fine. I’ve always been curious about airbender traditions. What is it like living there?”

“Not just airbender traditions, air nomads. We’re not all benders, the same way not all fire nation citizens are firebenders either” Ki explained “I’m not an airbender, for example”

“Oh I see” Ming’s eyes went back to the air nomad’s gentle expression “And what do non-benders do in the air temples, exactly?”

“The same as all the others. We take care of the chores, meditate and participate in the rituals and even train non-bending techniques and practices” Ki explained “We’re not seen as inferior either. Sure, we don’t have our bisons… And we also don’t go travelling the world as often as our bending brethren, but we’re acolytes just the same. My father, for one, is part of the elder council in air temple island”

“This seems nice, I bet must be a bit boring when your peers can airbend, though”

“Oh it’s nothing. I can still meditate and enter the spirit realm with an ease many airbenders cannot. Each person has unique traits, and unique responsibilities, depending on various circumstances”

Ming’s eyes drooped back to his tea, half finished.

“Unique traits, and unique responsibilities, you say?”

“Indeed. Non-benders don’t travel the world, as we have a duty to our temples. So do the benders, but theirs is to the whole of the world as well. I’m thankful I don’t have to worry about going on a taskforce and have to deal with relief efforts… A bit selfish of my part, and I do everything to support our brothers and sisters in their journeys, but it is how it is”

“Yeah, I mean, there’s no issue on thinking about yourself, you’ve got to live, right?”

“Definitely!” Niehi agreed “I know Ki is all cozy in air bender island, but I personally can’t wait until my training is complete! I can’t wait to travel the world with other benders and help people. But I’ll miss my quiet life back here. Especially this park”

“You’ll come by to visit often, I’m sure” Ki said “Not like this park will ever disappear” And as he said that he looked upwards toward avatar Korra’s face, shining with the afternoon’s sun.

Ming looked towards her as well, frowning a bit.

“And you?” Niehi asked “Are you a bender?”

“Oh… I? Yeah I’m uh… I’m a firebender” He said, unsure why he said it.

“Oh really?” Ki asked, curious.

“Yeah” Ming closed his fist and then opened it up again.

He had seen Kai do that move many times before, not only seen but felt how he did, how he reacted, and more importantly, his breathing anytime he did it. And with the same naturality, Ming conjured a ball in his hand, almost as if he had firebent his whole life.

“Cool” Ki said “I’d ask you if you knew any tricks, but it’s not wise to firebend in public parks”

“Yeah” Ming agreed, closing his fist again, trying to keep external calm.

“What’s your name anyways? If you don’t mind me asking” Niehi asked.

“... It’s Makoto”

“It’s a nice name” Ki said with a smile.

“So Makoto, you said that you lived with a bunch of hobos… Are you… Fine with that life?” Niehi asked.

“I… Used to be. Until my friends left me. Now I’m not sure. This is why I came here, to find some peace and maybe meditate a bit”

“It must be awful not having your friends around” Ki said “It certainly would make it feel less like home if the same happened to me”

“Haven’t you thought of leaving all of that behind? What’s the point if you’re not with your friends?”

“I value my own freedom, I like the kind of life I have”

“... Even when you don’t have your friends around anymore?” Ki asked, sensing he wasn’t being fully honest.

“... Perhaps not as much…”

“If you need help, we can try to help you out” Niehi said “You could stay at air temple island for a while… While you try and find a job”

“... No, I… I’ll figure something out, I don’t want to burden you or the air nomads… I have to figure this out on my own”

“You’re right” Ki said “It’s very responsible of you. I can only hope you’ll find what is right for you”

* * *

Iroh was having tea by himself this time, but he had a cushion in front of his low table, and an extra cup right in front of him.

“Hello Iroh” Ming greeted him, sitting with him at the table.

“Hello Makoto” He smiled “Nice seeing you here again”

“... You knew I’d come, didn’t you?”

“I usually have a knack at finding those who are in need of guidance. And you seem to be needing some tea and some words of wisdom”

“You know me” He said, sighing “I don’t know why I lied to them”

“Because it would be weird, someone called Ming walking around, firebending” Iroh chuckled “And you’re still not willing to admit to the world that you’re the avatar”

“I don’t want that responsibility” He said, more sad than upset “All I wanted was to live my life the way I want to”

“Ming, when I was much younger and naïve I fought in the hundred year war, in the first siege of Ba Sing Se. I thought that it was my duty as the next in line to do as my father expected of me, what my nation expected of me. But I soon found that that was not true, my younger brother, Ozai, got the throne before me and banished my dear nephew Zuko, after scarring him for life. That day forward my duty was with him, and I did all I could to guide him to a better path. When my responsibilities were dealt with, I started a tea house in the earth nation, and even then, when doing what I loved, I had responsibilities over my employees and my customers… You’ll never be able to run away from the simple truth that we must do what is required of us, for there is no one else in the world that will”

“... I can run away just a bit longer” The avatar muttered.

Iroh sighed, a stern and disappointed face.

“You must do what you think is right”

When he opened his eyes again it was night time once more, Ki and Niehi had left him another rice cake and another note.

“Hope we see each other soon! Great meditation once more”

He smiled, thinking back to what they offered him and what they had discussed prior.

“I guess it’s time to take some kind of responsibility…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll probably be slower to update from now on. I've got a lot of other WiPs and this one simply isn't much of a focus right now.


	3. Makoto

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ming embroils himself deeper into his new fake identity, finding a new place as a firebender in the pro bender arena.

“Makoto, really? Why stop there? Could’ve gone with some other alias when applying to the pro bender brackets” Korra laughed, teasing her new incarnation. “And you just put ‘to’ in front of Mako… Wow, how original. Wanna do Boming next?”

“Shut up” Ming couldn’t hold a chuckle back “It was what came to mind. Would be weird a guy called Ming running around firebending wouldn’t it?”

“I guess… But you hardly know anything about firebending yet”

“I’ve seen Kai use it many times before… And more than just saw him” Ming stepped on the floor of his dingy house, one he build himself entirely out of rocks.

When he touched the ground with his foot, he could feel the moles that burrowed in the land beneath, every nook and cranny of his house, and even the steps of the people outside going to the TV park to watch the evening telemover. With that same ability he had felt how Kai firebent, and in secret he would try to copy him and his breathing. It had never worked before, not until he showed it to the Air Nomads.

“I just couldn’t replicate it before” He said, closing his eyes and focusing in on his breathing, and just like that, he made fire appear in his hand, like the torch Kai would use frequently.

“It takes a lot more than just that to be a true firebender, you know?” Korra said with a sigh “And especially if you’re going to compete. Being a pro bender isn’t cheap either, back when I was one it used to cost a lot just to get the gear, I was lucky Mako and Bolin actually helped me out then”

“Yeah I know, the guy at the registering booth said so himself…” Ming slumped down back to his mattress once more “I’ll figure something out, I’m sure”

“That’s what you always say. You’ll figure something out” But when will you figure it out? You’ve got to at least plan something, do something instead of sulking here forever and clinging to your so precious freedom” She barrated him “At some point you’ll have to do more than just give empty promises”

Ming narrowed his eyes and looked to Korra, slowly raising from his position and standing up to her more firmly.

“Why do you care, you’re dead”

Korra sighed, all the anger and upset that she expressed moments ago melted to simple disappointment. It was worse than anything she could say.

“I live through you. And I'm all you’ve got left” She said, and then disappeared.

Ming kept staring blankly into the black void where she once stood, the dark room in the underground feeling even more hollow. He moved his toes a bit, as if searching for something to pay attention to, to distract him from that weight. But his mind would always wander back to Korra’s words.

* * *

The bell tolled twice as Makoto pushed the last bender of the enemy team to the water below with a fiery blast of his fist. The crowds cheered as his team gave him small pats on the back.

“Nice going there, Makoto” Lee said with that sly smile of his, taking off his gear and stuffing it in his locker.

“Thanks” He answered with his proudish grin. He didn’t even flinch anymore when they called him by his fake name.

“Semifinals will be next weekend, we should be coming back here to practice” Captain Talok said, cold and distant as always “I hope you’re not late for the training again, Makoto”

“Aw come on, even if I’m late I always perform the best on the ring!” He sneered back full of himself “But I’ll be there late or early either way, no need to sweat over it, cap”

Talok sighed.

“Guess it’s useless asking for you to come here on time. Just don’t miss it”

“Wouldn’t dare it” Ming finished stuffing his own equipment into the locker and headed out with the rest of his team. They grabbed the prize money for the night and went on their way, stopping for lunch in a small noodle cart in the middle of the road. Lee laughed at Ming’s jokes as Talok kept his cold expression, with a ghost of a smile peering through every so often.

They bid their goodbyes, with Talok insisting again that “You should not miss our training session” to Makoto.

“When did I ever?” Ming replied and went back to the underground.

He sensed Kai inside the house before he saw the man sitting in the middle of entry room of the house, a bottle of sake in his hand. The firebender heard Ming coming in and smirked.

“How was the tournament, Makoto?” He said, putting emphasis on the fake persona Ming had adopted.

“So you saw me” Ming said, his green eyes focused on his old friend’s silhouette.

“Of course I saw you. Heard of this Makoto guy in the radio going to my work. Ever since I saw you in that telemover… Being called Makoto…”

“Why are you drunk?”

“What? Can’t a guy have a bit of relief once he discovers his friend has been lying about being the avatar for years? I thought we were like brothers, I thought I could trust you” There was anger and remorse in Kai’s tone.

“Wait a fucking second. You two abandoned me and now you have the gaul to ask if you can trust me?”

“You stayed because you wanted to!” Kai stood up, his eyes flaming up, little fires with each breath “We invited you to come with us, you were just too much of a stubborn baby to accept a helping hand! You always dodged responsibility!”

“Well I’m not dodging it anymore am I? I’ve been doing great stuff with my team!”

“Ming! You’re the fucking avatar! People have been searching for you for twenty years and you think going to a pro bender match is facing responsibilities? You’ve been living in this hole for years, and for what?”

“I’ll deal with it when it's time to deal with it!”

“When are you going to stop giving these excuses?” Kai’s voice echoed Korra’s.

Silence.

“When will be the time to deal with it?” Kai asked.

“When I feel like it” Ming answered, not even daring look into his friend’s eyes “It’s my life, I’ll do with it as I please. Can you get out of my house now?”

Kai looked into the cowardly eyes of his earthbender friend, those defiant yet complacent orbs that dodged his own for so long.

“This will catch to you eventually” The firebender said as he headed out, purposefully hitting Ming’s elbow with his own. 

The Avatar held his arm as he looked at his drunken friend leaving the house and over to the exit of the shantytown, Korra’s words still echoing in his head.

‘I’m all you’ve got left’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've recently found out that canonically the new avatar and every one after them will be cut off from their past lives. I was so pissed at that fact that I decided to continue working on this fanfic out of pure spite of that terrible idea.


End file.
